The violence that surrounds the ‘No Other Land’ detention

Nicholas Kristof

Earlier this month, Hamdan Ballal, a Palestinian filmmaker, won an Oscar for best documentary feature for 'No Other Land', an exploration of repression in the West Bank.

Now back from the red carpet and in his home village of Susya in the West Bank, Ballal was detained overnight by Israeli troops Monday after, he said, he was beaten by an Israeli attacker. The events seemed to underscore the systematic injustice highlighted in his documentary.

There were disputes about what precisely had unfolded, as there often are; the Israeli military said Ballal had been detained on suspicion of throwing stones, which his lawyer denied, and it released him Tuesday.

But what is indisputable is that the United Nations has reported that attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians — often with Israeli troops standing by — have increased substantially. The UN documented an average of almost four violent settler attacks a day in 2024, in which five Palestinians, including a child, were reportedly killed. It is also true, of course, that Palestinians periodically attack settlers and troops, mostly by rock throwing.

'No Other Land', a joint project of Israelis and Palestinians, highlighted the destruction of Palestinian homes in the West Bank and unequal justice there. It received rave reviews in addition to the Oscar but was unable to get distribution in the United States, making it difficult for Americans to see it.

Ballal was set upon by people wearing masks and armed with rocks, sticks and knives, according to an account cited in The New York Times from a witness who is part of a volunteer effort to protect Palestinian areas from settler violence.

The Times reviewed video footage of part of the event, in which a masked man attacks several peace activists who had responded to Palestinian appeals for help. When the activists retreated to their car, attackers smashed the windshield with a rock.

All this reflects the impunity that violent settlers have largely enjoyed as they attack Palestinians, vandalize their property and, in some cases, try to drive them off their land. President Donald Trump added to the impunity by rescinding sanctions imposed by the Biden administration last year on dozens of far-right Israeli individuals and settler groups accused of violence against Palestinians. Trump made the move right after assuming office, even as Israeli arsonists set fire to Palestinian vehicles and properties.

Trump’s nominee for ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, has said that “there’s really no such thing as a Palestinian” and suggested that the West Bank belongs to Israel. His confirmation hearing was held Tuesday, and he’s very likely to be confirmed soon.

The United States historically tried, not very hard and not very successfully, to dampen tensions and settlement construction on the West Bank. But now, it’s difficult to avoid the impression that the Trump administration is exacerbating a dangerous situation by promoting impunity on one side, making everything both more unjust and more explosive.